


Strength

by kinneyb



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-15
Updated: 2015-06-15
Packaged: 2018-04-04 12:54:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,404
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4138335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kinneyb/pseuds/kinneyb
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Reid gets overpowered by an unsub during a case and questions if he's cut out for the FBI. </p><p>Morgan reminds him that he is.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Strength

“Come on, kid, don’t shut me out. Not right now.”

Reid was sitting in his hotel room, cuddled up on the couch, with Morgan sitting next to him. He could  _feel_ the irritation radiating off the other agent’s body. Not at him, really, just at the entire situation.

“Reid,” Morgan continued, voice lowering a bit, “I just want to help.”

He knew he was being irrational but the unsub’s word still echoed in his head.

\---

Reid entered the house along with all the others. Like usual, they separated and went through each room. After just a minute or two Morgan’s voice broke through the silence and relief washed through everyone. “I found her!”

The latest victim.

Reid sighed.  _He_ was still out there, though.

“I think he’s upstairs,” JJ’s voice carried through the halls.

He tightened the grip on his gun and headed for the staircase. He arrived around the same time as Morgan. “Maybe it’d be best if you stayed down here,” he’d instructed, and Reid now really wished he had. At the time however he’d rolled his eyes and Morgan shrugged, only able to do so much.

They both raced up the staircase, guns readied, and immediately they caught sight of the unsub trying to sneak out a window. JJ was by their side within an instant, her own gun lifted and ready for fire.

“FBI!” Morgan exclaimed, voice loud and confident. “Stop where you are and put your hands up.”

Slowly the unsub stepped back into the house, his hand resting on the windowsill. He turned, staring at the three agents. Now Reid knew what he’d been doing - he’d been  _calculating_ , searching for the weakest link.

Sneering, Morgan gestured with his gun. “I said hands up.”

Finally he lifted his hands into the air like instructed. Reid should’ve known by the smile on his face that he wasn’t going down without a fight but he  _hadn’t_. He was supposedly a genius but he hadn’t even noticed such an obvious sign.

Morgan approached him until finally he was within touching distance. He put his gun away and pulled out a pair of handcuffs. “Turn around,” he ordered.

The next few seconds felt like a lifetime. 

He’d reached down and yanked a knife out of his pocket before Morgan could do a thing about it. He slashed at him and as anyone would Morgan jumped a few feet back, colliding with the wall.

JJ fired her gun but her shock got the better of her and she missed, the bullet going out through the window.

The unsub completely ignored her, going for his actual victim. Reid.

He grabbed him by the neck of his shirt and drew him close, pressing the knife hard against his cheek. By now Morgan had gotten back up and was reaching for his gun. “Stop,” the man barked, startling Morgan, and he pulled his hand back. He had no other choice.

His eyes searched the two agents carefully. When he felt confident they poised no threat now, he put his lips uncomfortably close to Reid’s ear. Reid struggled against his grip.

“You’re really not much of an agent, are you?”

Suddenly he stopped struggling, Morgan and JJ both noticed that, but thankfully he was whispering so low neither of them could hear what he was saying. Reid swallowed.

“I mean, really - I had an option of her,” he pointed at JJ somewhat with the knife, who grimaced but stayed still, “but no, I went after you because you’re the weak one, aren’t you?”

Reid reached up and weakly clawed at the arm around his neck. He knew the unsub was sadistic - it had shown in his behavior - and that meant he was just looking to get him flustered. It didn’t mean anything he said was true.

But if it wasn’t true why did it hurt so bad to hear?

Reid breathed out heavily, an attempt at staying conscious because the grip around his neck seemed to be tightening by the second. Maybe because he’d heard the same words before.

“You’re a worthless excuse for an FBI agent,” he sneered as he backed up, only stopping once his back had connected with the window. “If I wanted, I could kill your two little friends right now all because you’re so  _pathetic_ you couldn’t even protect them.”

Reid felt like he was going to be sick. 

He was abruptly pushed away and he stumbled forward, colliding with JJ. The unsub tried using that for a distraction to get out the window but Morgan was a step ahead of him. He lunged at the man and brought him down with a single blow to the face.

\---

_“You’re worthless.”  
_

_“Pathetic.”_

Reid was shaken out of his thoughts by Morgan, who’s hand was gently resting on his shoulder. "Pretty boy,” the same nickname that usually made him smile didn’t even touch him right now. “I know something’s wrong, just tell me.” Reid felt Morgan’s grip on his shoulder grow tight. “I’m here for you, okay?”

His tongue flickered out, dampening his chapped lips. “I - I’m not cut out for this, am I?” Reid lowered his head, staring blankly at his hands just for a lack of anything better to look at. “I’m not like you guys... I can’t ever defend myself. I’m always getting everyone hurt.” Reid paused. “I’m not strong.”

Confused, Morgan furrowed his brows. “So what?”

Reid looked up. “So maybe I’m not cut out to be in the FBI.”

Suddenly Morgan’s face flashed with something he couldn’t quite place. He lifted his other hand and grasped both of Reid’s shoulders. “Being strong isn’t everything, Spencer,” he stressed.

“But it sure does help,” Reid gave a dry laugh. “You could’ve died earlier, Derek - “ If he was going to use his first name, he would do the same. “You could’ve died because of  _me_.” He gestured at himself, nearly trembling from the mix of anger and sadness he felt. “Because of how weak I am.”

Morgan narrowed his eyes. “You think because I’m strong I’m better than you or something?” There was a short pause before eventually Reid shrugged; a small action that he might’ve missed if not for his hands being on his shoulders and physically feeling it. “That’s ridiculous, Spencer.”

Feeling somewhat embarrassed, Reid shifted but kept quiet.

“Yeah, I’m stronger than you,” Morgan continued, his hand moving off Reid’s shoulder and slipping up over his neck before resting on his cheek. “But if you want to quit simply because I'm stronger than you - “ He tapped Reid’s temple. “ - then I guess I should also quit because you’re way smarter than me.”

Reid blinked. “It’s not the same - “

“Yeah, it is.” Morgan interrupted, sweeping his thumb across Reid’s jawline. “You’re amazing at what you do, Spencer, and this team would be a mess without you. We all have our own different strong points and that’s what makes us so good at this job.”

Silently, Reid stared into Morgan’s eyes. 

“Hotch - he’s a great leader, he knows how to keep everything from boiling over and becoming a jumbled mess. JJ - she’s compassionate and keeps us all together like glue. Rossi - he can make us laugh but he knows exactly why he does this job. Garcia - she’s a ray of sunshine who keeps us from going under when everything gets too much.”

He paused, pressing his forehead against Reid’s. 

“And you - you’re the most intelligent person I’ve ever met. You notice little things nobody else does, you can recite every article on Wikipedia off the top of your head...” Morgan stopped for a second, a small smile spreading across his face. “And you remind me why I keep fighting every single day even when all I wanna do is give up.”

Reid couldn’t help but return the smile. He reached up, gently caressing Morgan’s face. “And you’re the strong one. Not just because of your outward strength but because you’re always there for everyone, always watching over us and protecting us even when we don’t realize it.”

"Damn right I am,” Morgan replied, smile widening a bit.

Reid let out a quiet laugh as Morgan leaned forward and teased him, almost pressing their lips together but stopping just before they actually touched. “Stop that,” Reid muttered eventually, cupping Morgan’s face as he softly kissed him. Maybe being strong didn’t require big muscles after-all. Maybe it just meant being confident in your own strengths.


End file.
